Audi Dealer Rip off
08-01-2010, 06:30 PM
#81
PassionFord Post Whore!!
08-01-2010, 06:51 PM
#82
i dont see what the fuss is about tbh,
£200 for wheel alignment isnt that bad when you consider most dealers are on over £100 per hour now,
sure it may only take 20mins to check it IF its a simple one and doesnt need much work, but dealers normally have a fixed price for jobs like that, some they do may take 2 hours as they do have lots of adjustment scope, its not like an old ford with simply a pair of track rod ends to adjust
if you do wheel alignment properly, first checking tyre pressures, placing the vehicle on the calibrated ramp, fitting the gear, finding the tech data, making adjustments to potentally all four wheels in every way some have lots of adjustment, then remove the gear, drive the vehicle to allow the suspension to settle, place it back on the ramp, reftit the gear, check the adjustments are now correct, if not adjust again... it can take a bit of time to get them spot on. At £100 per hour minimum, £200 comes along quite quickly...
ive seen an invoice for £70 labour plus the cost of the part, to change a headlight bulb, as it meant removing the battery... its just the cost of things these days.
a ten year old M5 is a good example, not exactly cutting edge by the standards these days, but a set of tyres cost £1200, and the suspension is fully adjustable on all four wheels,
now i certainly wouldnt want a spotty kwik fit guy whos had one days training doing the tracking on that for me... all of a sudden £200 doesnt seem so bad.
£200 for wheel alignment isnt that bad when you consider most dealers are on over £100 per hour now,
sure it may only take 20mins to check it IF its a simple one and doesnt need much work, but dealers normally have a fixed price for jobs like that, some they do may take 2 hours as they do have lots of adjustment scope, its not like an old ford with simply a pair of track rod ends to adjust
if you do wheel alignment properly, first checking tyre pressures, placing the vehicle on the calibrated ramp, fitting the gear, finding the tech data, making adjustments to potentally all four wheels in every way some have lots of adjustment, then remove the gear, drive the vehicle to allow the suspension to settle, place it back on the ramp, reftit the gear, check the adjustments are now correct, if not adjust again... it can take a bit of time to get them spot on. At £100 per hour minimum, £200 comes along quite quickly...
ive seen an invoice for £70 labour plus the cost of the part, to change a headlight bulb, as it meant removing the battery... its just the cost of things these days.
a ten year old M5 is a good example, not exactly cutting edge by the standards these days, but a set of tyres cost £1200, and the suspension is fully adjustable on all four wheels,
now i certainly wouldnt want a spotty kwik fit guy whos had one days training doing the tracking on that for me... all of a sudden £200 doesnt seem so bad.
Last edited by JTECH James; 08-01-2010 at 07:02 PM.
08-01-2010, 07:01 PM
#83
PassionFord Post Whore!!
Our local garage here charges £120 an hour for Audi,Bmw,Nissan,Citreon,Suzuki,Mitsubishi,Land rover,Peugeot,Jeep and Saab and thats one garage as all these as sole agents for them
08-01-2010, 07:41 PM
#84
10K+ Poster!!
In this day and age pal your cossie is a job for an apprentice thats how far technology has progressed, I have apprentices doing repairs on vehicle that where not even around when your old ford was new mate.
AlexF - your wasting your time, I give up. and yes I represent manufacturer's as well.
thats how far technology has progressed, I have apprentices doing repairs on vehicle that where not even around when your old ford was new mate.AlexF - your wasting your time, I give up. and yes I represent manufacturer's as well.
Alex
08-01-2010, 07:42 PM
#85
For last 2-3 years my local Ford dealership charges £150 per hour! And I still use them last time I had wheel alignment done because the focus kept veering left they checked it out and computer said its ok but still had the same problem. I requested they road test it each time and they agree somethings wrong took whole day to find the problem and solve at a fixed price job was a bargin in the end! My misses previously took it 2 different independants and charged her £175 and £220 without fixing the problem.
08-01-2010, 11:05 PM
#86
I was going to quote alot of posts but its just the same thing over and over again, dealers - rip off, computer fixes car for you = all fiiters work at dealers, i'll not bother.
yes mate, they are usually sat in front of a classroom listening to you because they have the ability to learn and they have earnt that right fro their employer
yes mate, they are usually sat in front of a classroom listening to you because they have the ability to learn and they have earnt that right fro their employer
08-01-2010, 11:46 PM
#87
PassionFord Post Whore!!
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Sheffield
Posts: 5,689
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Main dealers ARE a rip off though. Everyone knows that dont they, even the people who take their vehicles there. Yes they may have higher costs blah blah blah but they certainly more than make up for it with their prices.
The thing is, some people assume they are getting a 'better' service when taking a car to the main dealers, and as a result, pay through the nose. At the end of the day its a trained mechanic/technician/fitter doing the work, just like its a trained mechanic/technician/fitter doing the work futher down the road at half the cost. Either guy could make a mistake, thats just human nature.
Yes some might say 'but there used to working on xxx cars' etc. Thats when specialists come into it for the more 'different/rarer/special' cars. Some cars might require special equipment, but in this day and age i would have thought specialists can do anything a main delaer can do. I might be wrong on that one, i dunno.
The people who take their cars to dealers because they think there getting a 'better job', or very often the people who think there getting a better car if they buy one with 50k on it instead of the one with 80k on it. Or the ones that think the more they pay, the better the car will be. You dont always get what you pay for, and very often, you get less than what you paid for. Its only a human being doing the job whether its tom, dick or harry. Some say you get better after sales but again, thats a matter of opinion.
Just my opinion on it anyway. Im sure main dealers wont go bust purely because of my opinion.
Everyone knows that dont they, even the people who take their vehicles there. Yes they may have higher costs blah blah blah but they certainly more than make up for it with their prices.The thing is, some people assume they are getting a 'better' service when taking a car to the main dealers, and as a result, pay through the nose. At the end of the day its a trained mechanic/technician/fitter doing the work, just like its a trained mechanic/technician/fitter doing the work futher down the road at half the cost. Either guy could make a mistake, thats just human nature.
Yes some might say 'but there used to working on xxx cars' etc. Thats when specialists come into it for the more 'different/rarer/special' cars. Some cars might require special equipment, but in this day and age i would have thought specialists can do anything a main delaer can do. I might be wrong on that one, i dunno.
The people who take their cars to dealers because they think there getting a 'better job', or very often the people who think there getting a better car if they buy one with 50k on it instead of the one with 80k on it. Or the ones that think the more they pay, the better the car will be. You dont always get what you pay for, and very often, you get less than what you paid for. Its only a human being doing the job whether its tom, dick or harry. Some say you get better after sales but again, thats a matter of opinion.
Just my opinion on it anyway. Im sure main dealers wont go bust purely because of my opinion.
Last edited by S1rst; 08-01-2010 at 11:50 PM.
08-01-2010, 11:52 PM
#88
one thing you wont get though is the warranty - you tak eyour car into a bmw garage in scotland for a part, it failes through a mechanical defect outside london bmw, and its gonna get fixed foc.
that aint gonna happen with fred in the shed scotlands best bmw mechanic now is it ? - thats just one aspect.
that aint gonna happen with fred in the shed scotlands best bmw mechanic now is it ? - thats just one aspect.
09-01-2010, 12:03 AM
#89
PassionFord Post Whore!!
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Sheffield
Posts: 5,689
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
one thing you wont get though is the warranty - you tak eyour car into a bmw garage in scotland for a part, it failes through a mechanical defect outside london bmw, and its gonna get fixed foc.
that aint gonna happen with fred in the shed scotlands best bmw mechanic now is it ? - thats just one aspect.
that aint gonna happen with fred in the shed scotlands best bmw mechanic now is it ? - thats just one aspect.
Seriously, i see your point though on that one mate.
Last edited by S1rst; 09-01-2010 at 12:04 AM.
09-01-2010, 12:07 AM
#90
Ill take the risk mate and pay half price with Fred. Then get the AA to bring me back, and then even if Fred wont sort it out under warrenty, id just get him to do the job again and ill still be level. That way id be making more money for Fred so he could upgrade his Shed. Good old Fred!
Seriously, i see your point though on that one mate.
Seriously, i see your point though on that one mate.
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
